James J. Cadden, police officer

James J. Cadden, a retired Baltimore police homicide detective and highly decorated World War II veteran, died Monday of a swallowing disorder at his Cockeysville home. He was 88.

The son of a construction owner and a homemaker, James Joseph Cadden was born and raised in the former 10th Ward in Baltimore.

He attended the old St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church parochial school on Valley Street and then attended city public schools. He left school in the ninth grade and later earned his General Education Development diploma.

He enlisted in the Army in 1943, and after being trained as a paratrooper, served with the 506th Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division.

Mr. Cadden landed at Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944, and later fought in the ill-fated Operation Market Garden, the air invasion of Arnhem in the Netherlands when Allied forces encountered stiff German resistance.

In mid-December 1944, Mr. Cadden fought at Bastogne, Belgium, during the Battle of the Bulge. He was decorated with the Silver Star for valor after he and another soldier breached enemy lines in an attempt to rescue a seriously wounded soldier crying for help.

"They raced back carrying the man, who screamed in pain as enemy fire fell around them," said a daughter, Laura Cadden of Federal Hill. "The man died that night."

Mr. Cadden, who was discharged in 1946 with the rank of technical sergeant, also received two Purple Hearts and three Bronze Stars, his daughter said.

He joined the Baltimore Police Department in 1949, where he worked as a homicide detective until he retired in 1977. In 1978, he took a job with the Maryland State Lottery and at the time of his retirement in 1995, he was manager of the television drawings.

Mr. Cadden was a founder of the St. John's Old 10th Ward Association.

He was a longtime communicant and usher at St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church, 101 Church Lane, Cockeysville, where a Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 9:30 a.m. Friday.

In addition to his daughter, Mr. Cadden is survived by his wife of 62 years, the former Shirley Seth; two sons, Brian Cadden of Cockeysville and David Cadden of Delta, Pa.; another daughter, Jean Taube of Rodgers Forge; and two grandchildren.